SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) – A three-bedroom unit in freehold Visioncrest was sold at a loss of approximately $92,000 last month. The seller purchased the 1,227 sq ft unit at $2,438 psf in September 2007 before selling it for $2,363 psf.

At the time of writing, the freehold development in prime District 9 had 38 unprofitable transactions with losses ranging from approximately $20,000 to $726,000. As such, the loss of $92,000 is at the lower end of the loss spectrum. Visioncrest also had 127 profitable transactions with profits ranging from approximately $7,000 to $1.206 million.

We used our analytics tool, "Is it a Good Deal?", to determine whether the buyer of the three-bedroom unit in Visioncrest had snagged a bargain.

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A short walk to triple-line Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station

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Visioncrest is a freehold mixed-use development with 265 condo units and an 11-storey office building. The condo features one-bedroom to three-bedroom units with sizes ranging from 570 sq ft to 5,317 sq ft. Visioncrest obtained its temporary occupation permit (TOP) in 2007.

Visioncrest is located along Oxley Rise, which is a short walk away from Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station. The station serves three MRT lines, namely the North-South, North-East, and Circle Lines (see Map 1). As such, residents of Visioncrest enjoy excellent connectivity to all parts of the island.

Furthermore, there are numerous amenities within walking distance of the condo. These include Plaza Singapura, Orchard Central, Orchard Gateway, The Centrepoint, Cuppage Plaza, Fort Canning Park, and Somerset MRT Station.

There are also a number of schools within a 1km radius, including River Valley Primary School, St. Margaret’s School (Primary), and School of the Arts Singapore. St. Margaret’s School (Primary) is currently located at a temporary site along Mattar Road, but the popular primary school will move back to its permanent location along Sophia Road at the end of this year.

Buyer seems to have secured a bargain

Our "Is it a Good Deal?" analytics tool indicates that the transacted price is marginally above the average price for the development but also slightly below the average price for the district. Furthermore, the transacted price is below the average prices for two neighbouring condos (see Screenshot 1). Other plus points include numerous amenities nearby and the freehold tenure of the condo.

Visoncrest has three unprofitable transactions this year

At the time of writing, three unprofitable and seven profitable transactions had taken place for Visioncrest this year. The three unprofitable units were purchased in 2007 for over $2,400 psf and sold for approximately $2,300 psf (see Table 1).

Read also: Is it a Good Deal?: $1.38 million for a freehold studio with a private lift in District 9

It is interesting that the unprofitable transactions that took place in February and July are for three-bedroom units from the same stack, and hence both units share the same floor layout. The unit that was sold in May has two bedrooms.

The unit that was sold last month at a loss of approximately $92,000 measures 1,227 sq ft (see Floor Plan 1). The unit features a spacious living and dining area as well as a balcony that spans the length of the living area. Additionally, it has a small utilities room adjacent to the kitchen, which can be used as a helper’s room. The regular shape of the three bedrooms should appeal to most buyers.

The 904 sq ft unit on the fifth storey was sold in May for a loss of approximately $103,000. The unit has two regularly-shaped bedrooms as well as a compact living and dining area. However, the master bathroom has an irregular shape, which could make the unit less appealing to buyers (see Floor Plan 2). Furthermore, the unit does not have a utilities room unlike the three-bedroom unit mentioned above.

Sellers paid a premium

The losses generated by the three units could be attributed to the premium paid by the sellers when they purchased their units. All three sellers paid more than $2,400 psf for their units in 2007, but the average price for Visioncrest was only $2,017 psf that year (see Chart 1). Furthermore, the average prices for freehold condos in District 9 and islandwide were only $2,031 psf and $1,176 psf, respectively, in 2007.

Fortunately for the three sellers, the average price for Visioncrest rose by 16.1% since 2007 to the average price of $2,341 psf this year. Although the current average price is still lower than what they paid, the price growth helped to mitigate their losses.

It is also notable that the buyer of #09-XX paid $2,363 psf, which is about 0.9% higher than the current average price for the development. However, the seller still suffered a loss of approximately $92,000 because they paid $2,438 psf for the unit, which was 20.9% above the condo’s average price in 2007.

Read also: Project Spotlight: 87% of sellers lost money in this D9 freehold condo

Buyers have plenty of options

There are 30 condos representing over 2,000 units within walking distance of Visioncrest. Of these, 22 condos have freehold tenures like Visioncrest. However, the majority are small developments with fewer than 200 units. Only Visioncrest and 8 @ Mount Sophia (313 units) feature more than 200 units. The 103-year leasehold 8 @ Mount Sophia also obtained its TOP in the same year as Visioncrest.

The Imperial and The Botanic on Lloyd are freehold developments that are the closest in age to Visioncrest. Both developments received their TOP in 2006, making them a year older than Visioncrest. The Imperial is located along Jalan Rumbia and features 187 units (see Map 2). The Botanic on Lloyd is a boutique development (66 units) along Lloyd Road. While both condos are in District 9, only The Imperial is in the same Museum Planning Area as Visioncrest. The Botanic on Lloyd is in the River Valley Planning Area.

The Imperial has no unprofitable transactions this year

At the time of writing, The Imperial has 208 profitable and five unprofitable transactions. Two of the profitable transactions took place this year, and six occurred last year. The most recent unprofitable transaction for The Imperial took place in 2017.

The stronger profitability of The Imperial is notable despite the development being located further away from Orchard Road. However, there are numerous amenities within walking distance, including Fort Canning MRT Station, UE Shopping Mall, Robertson Walk, and Fort Canning Park. The development also has School of the Arts Singapore and River Valley Primary School within a 1 km radius.

The most recent profitable transaction for The Imperial took place last month and generated a profit of approximately $1.737 million for the seller (see Table 2). The 1,733 sq ft unit features three bedrooms.

It is also noteworthy that the seller is the second owner, who purchased the unit in a sub-sale for $1,306 psf. The first owner bought the unit in September 2003 for $852 psf before selling it to the second owner in December 2006 for a profit of approximately $787,000.

Price for Visioncrest trending close to its peers

The average resale prices for Visioncrest and The Imperial are trending close to their freehold counterparts in District 9 (see Chart 2). This year, the average resale price for Visioncrest is $2,341 psf, which is slightly higher than that for The Imperial ($2,278 psf) and for freehold condos in District 9 ($2,313 psf).

However, Visioncrest has achieved significantly stronger price growth in recent years. Since 2020, the average resale price for Visioncrest has risen by 20.4%, compared to the growth of 7.6% for The Imperial and the increase of 6.3% for freehold condos in District 9.

Conclusion

The seller still suffered a loss despite selling the unit for a price that is marginally higher than the average price for Visioncrest. Another noteworthy point is that the average resale price for Visioncrest is higher than that for The Imperial and its counterparts in District 9.

However, the average resale price for Visioncrest has grown significantly since the pandemic. The price growth for the freehold condo has surpassed that of the neighbouring The Imperial and freehold condos in District 9. Furthermore, Visioncrest is located adjacent to a triple-line MRT station, in a prime district and near numerous amenities.

To learn more about this transaction, and whether it is a good deal, click here.

Check out the latest listings for Visioncrest, The Imperial properties

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